Blue fentanyl causing users to 'drop,' official warns

Public health officials and local police are concerned about a new, more dangerous form of fentanyl that’s circulating in the region, prompting a warning about the potentially fatal drug.

Southwestern Public Health issued an alert this week about blue fentanyl, warning this version of the opioid often is more potent.

Lisa Gillespie, a public health nurse in Woodstock, said Southwestern Public Health heard from clients in its needle syringe program that blue fentanyl made its first appearance in Oxford County and the broader region just before Christmas.

From what public health officials learned from clients, blue fentanyl is more powerful than regular fentanyl.

“Clients don’t know (what’s in it), but they tell us the reaction. It sounds like this is quite a toxic batch, with people dropping almost immediately after use and feeling very ill for several days after,” Gillespie said. “It was unlike any other experience they’ve had with other substances.”

Gillespie said blue fentanyl earned its name from clients. She added public health officials have heard the substance has a light blue shade similar to pool or billiard chalk.

What’s exactly in the blue fentanyl is not known.

Earlier this week, a 34-year-old Oxford County man was arrested and charged by Oxford OPP in Ingersoll with possession of blue fentanyl, methamphetamine and hydromorphone.

OPP Const. Ed Sanchuk said the Oxford detachment sent the confiscated supply of blue fentanyl to Health Canada for testing and are still waiting on the results.

“There’s a lot of different synthetic fentanyls we’re learning about every day. Until there’s a sample that shows us what’s in it, we don’t know,” Gillespie said. “It could be carfentanyl or one of the synthetics that are coming onto the scene.

“We have to give people the same message to never use alone, use a small amount because you don’t know what’s in it, get a naloxone kit and be trained on how to respond to an overdose because street-level supplies are so unknown people have to be extra cautious.”

Gillespie said blue fentanyl has severe side effects that cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhea for several days after use.

“Because of the concerning symptoms and side effects people were experiencing that seemed different, we put an alert out,” she said. “There might be other substances we don’t know about, which is very concerning.”

Fentanyl is a highly addictive opioid pain medication that’s 100 times more powerful than heroin. A related drug, carfentanil, is 5,000 times more potent than heroin. Both drugs have been blamed for fuelling the deadly opioid crisis that’s killed hundreds across Canada in recent years.

Tony Hymers, the Oxford OPP detachment commander, said police are working with members of the community to prevent drug trafficking.

“Our community street crimes unit has been very effective with proactive illicit drug investigations. This is yet another example that highlights the need for the police and the community to work in partnership to resolve crime issues,” Hymers said of the arrest earlier this week. “People who distribute illicit drugs, and are involved in criminal activity, know the police are watching, but if we create a community where these people know everyone is watching and reporting, that will promote safer communities within our county.”

Sanchuk said local officers are equipped and trained to use naloxone — a drug that temporarily reverses the effects of opioid drugs — and have had to use it to save lives. He said different types of fentanyl are common in Oxford County and surrounding regions.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s blue fentanyl, purple fentanyl or even fentanyl, it’s in the community. We know it’s there and people need to realize the dangers associated with it,” he said. “Fentanyl is an extremely potent synthetic opioid that was prescribed for people with acute pain “You can’t see it, you can’t smell it and you can’t taste it. It’s lethal in quantities as small as two milligrams, so that’s equal to about 32 grains of table salt or seven poppy seeds. If someone does anything with even a trace of fentanyl, it can kill them.”

Sanchuk said people can overdose from fentanyl if they come into contact with just a few grains.

“People need to realize they’re rolling the dice any time they consume illicit drugs. You just don’t know if that drug’s been mixed with fentanyl,” Sanchuk said. “People need to realize that it’s here and they need to be aware of it.”

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